EDIT: 9/3/2015
Having fun in Regalo?
Author's Corner!
Kousuke will speak! Enjoy the chapter, I'll be working on Know Your Allies and this one, and a little bit of Gitsune Clan. The others I'll put off for next month.
R&R ~ Read On!
Legend: ' ' are thoughts, " " are characters speaking, *bold* are actions done by characters and sfx, italics represent past events, memories, emphasis and foreign language, and bold italics time skips.
WARNING: May contain OOC, various point-of-view, and possible lemons!
V : Cousins
"Ah, it's irresistible!"
"You're not likely to find something this delicious anywhere else in the world."
"It's Regalo's treasure."
"Yes, indeed."
The three of us, meaning Luca, Fel, and I, walk into the dining room from the kitchen, Luca pushing a cart along the way. "Sorry about the wait, everyone," he says as he removes the cover of the food platter.
"Limone pie!" Pace shoots up from his seat, happy to see said dessert. Not only Pace, but everyone else was happy, as well. I giggled a bit as I stood beside Fel. "So delicious that it holds its own against those sold in shops," Dante states.
"Milady and Arianna-sama helped out today, as well," Luca tells them. "Please make sure you enjoy every bite."
"Thank you for the food!"
"It's so good~" Pace comments, his face stuffed with pie. I looked and him and chuckled, "Pace, there's pie on your face," I tell him, wiping his face with a napkin. "Ah, thank you, Hime."
"Hey, Luca, what's with the small serving?" Debito asks. "He has a point," Nova agrees.
Pace gets up from his seat and bites on the plate, "Yeah! I wanna eat more!" "Ah, jeez. That's why I asked you to fully enjoy every bite!" Luca says.
I notice Felicità looking at Libertà, and it seems that Nova noticed as well. (A/N: Fel sits to his left, Aria to his right and left of Pace) He notices as well and gets up from his seat to leave. 'Libertà...'
"My apologies, Milady, Kousuke, but could you help me for a moment?" Fel gets up from her seat to help Luca. I look at Kousuke and give him a nod that meant "Please go help him". He nods at me and gets up from his seat to help Luca, as well. As they leave the table, I notice Nova get up from his seat to follow Libertà. Or at least that's what I assumed he was doing.
I was walking down the hallway with Kousuke and noticed Felicità carrying some boxes. "Kousuke, I thought you were going to help her?" I ask him, pouting that he didn't help a lady in need. "I did offer to help, but she said she could handle it. Felicità-sama is a stubborn one, after all," he tells me.
We walk towards her when I notice Nova come from the other corridor.
"You can't see where you're going with that, can you?" he deadpans.
"He's right, Fel. You should be careful with those," I tell her.
"Ah, Nova, Arianna and Kousuke," she says, looking at every one of us. "What's in the boxes?" he asks. "It's Limone pie," I tell him, walking stand at Fel's side. Kousuke followed and said, "Mama and everyone else said they'd like to eat some, as well. So, Felicità-sama decided to take it to them."
"Where's Luca?"
"Well, that's..."
Nova sighs as Kousuke tells him what Luca was doing. "I thought I could at least deliver them since he was busy," she says. Nova takes four of the seven boxes into his hands and turns around. "Nova?"
"Hoh," I mutter, putting a hand to my face to hide my smirk.
"If you were to fall, you'd ruin the pies," he tells her. "Thank you."
I turn to Kousuke, only to see that he was no longer there. "...At least tell me you're leaving, idiot..." I mutter.
"Arianna, are you coming?" I hear Fel call out to me. I turn back to her a bit surprised, "A-Ah, yeah!"
"Sitting here eating limone pie like this reminds me of when the three of you were little."
We sat down to eat some of the pie we brought to Mama since she offered so kindly. "Um, Mama... Could you not bring up the past..." Nova asks her. "Oh, there's no need to be embarrassed."
"I remember, too."
We turned to Felicità as she continues, "I remember the first day you came to our house, Nova. It was the second time Arianna was visiting us from Japan, as well." I feel my face heat up a bit as we talk about it.
"What's the matter, Nova? Come over here," Papa Mondo tells a young Nova. "Yes, sir..." he replies quietly.
Mama Sumire walks up to him, taking his hand into hers and says, "We're going to be a family now, so there's no need to hold back."
"A family?" he asks.
"Hm?" I hum. I sat in the gazebo with Papa Mondo, dozing off a bit.
"Sorry to keep you waiting." I jump up a bit as I heard Luca. Papa Mondo chuckled at my reaction, causing me to puff up my cheeks.
"Here is the limone pie that Milady made." They walk up to the gazebo to place the pie and plates onto the table. "You made it for the first time with Luca for Nova, right?" Mama Sumire asks Fel. "Yes!" Papa Mondo suddenly becomes depressed, so I turn to look at him, poking his cheek.
"Papa Mondo, what's wrong?" I ask.
"He gets to eat Felicità's cooking before me?"
"Oh, don't be so sad. Nova is her future husband, after all," Mama Sumire tells him.
"Luca, where's Kou-chan?" I ask him. "Kousuke is running an errand, Arianna-sama. He will return by nightfall."
"Oh... Okay! Luca, can I help you make something next time?" "Why, of course," he smiles at me.
"Here!" I hear Fel say. I turn to see her giving a piece of pie to Nova. I run up to her, almost tripping in the process, and hug her from the side. "Eh? No fair, I want Fel's pie, too!" As I said this, a serving of pie was placed in front of my face. I look up to see Luca. "Here you are, Arianna-sama. Fel cut a second piece just for you."
I smile happily, taking the pie and giving Fel a kiss on the cheek. "I love you, Fel~"
I run back to my seat and eat the pie happily. Papa Mondo pats my head, "Haha! You're so lively, Arianna!"
Nova finally takes his serving of the pie, cutting a piece and eating it. "It's delicious!" "I'm so glad!"
"Now, you have a seat, too, Felicità. Let's all eat together," Mama Sumire says. Nova sits in the seat to my left, with Fel sitting in the sit to his left. He looks at her, then quickly turns away as she looked back. Then, he looks at me, face a bit pink. I look back at him. "Hm?" I hum as I take another bite, not noticing the pie that was left on the corner of my mouth. He quickly turns away again, taking another bite of his share awkwardly.
"My, Aria. You've gotten pie on your face." I look up to see Mama Sumire leaning over the table, a napkin in her hand. She wipes my face clean as I giggle at the touch. "Hehe, thank you, Mama Sumire!"
"Oh my," she says as she notices pie sticking to Nova and Fel's faces. I turn to look at them as Mama Sumire wipes Nova's face, then moving to wipe Fel's face.
"That was the first time I felt the warm feeling of being in a family," Nova says. 'Nova...' I thought while looking at him sadly. Mama catches me looking at him and whispers my name. (A/N: the way they sat at the table is Fel, Arianna, Nova and Mama from left to right, cos the table is round) I look to her as she shakes her head as if saying 'There's no need for that.' I hesitated a bit before nodding in return. I know that Nova had it hard, but is it bad to care for my cousins' well being? I already worry about Felicità. I also worry about Libertà.
Why is everyone around me in this state? It's almost as if...
...they're lost.
The three of us walked back into the hall, each of us carrying a vase of Giapponese flowers. "Giapponese flowers are so pretty," Felicità says.
"I sometimes ask Mama to share some of hers like this," Nova tells us. "Really?" I ask. "I had these shipped in for Mama some time back. I didn't know you liked them, as well, Nova."
"I heard from Mama that there are flowers called "sakura" in Giappone as well," he says. ""Sakura"?" Felicità asks.
"Yes," he began. "Apparently, when they are in full bloom, the areas they grown in all turn pink. I'd like to see that one day."
"Is that so..." I trail off, walking ahead a bit.
"You really like Giappone, don't you?" Felicità asks him. "Th-That's because I have an interest in other countries..." I hear him say. He seemed flustered at the question. I stop walking to look at them and ask, "Do you have fertilizer for your flowers?"
"I do." "No." Nova turns to Felicità and says, "I'll show you a place that sells some after work." "Eh?" she blurts out.
"Come with us on the patrol tomorrow. You're in the upper echelon, so it'd be helpful to see the other departments. Besides, Aria will be there. She can show you which fertilizer is the best." She glances at me, so I give her a smile that said "Go on".
"Thank you, I would be honored."
"Today, our patrol will concentrate on the shopping district. Don't disregard even the smallest feeling of uneasiness, and pay attention to the conversations and actions of the people. Got it?"
"Yes, sir!" they reply in unison.
"Wow..." I hear Felicità say.
We were walking through the town, keeping an eye out for anything out of the ordinary. Nova walked in between me and Felicità, me being on his left. "What?" I hear him say. I turn back to them and see Felicità looking at him. "Hm?"
"Oh, it's nothing...I just thought that the two of you really are amazing. You do a great job as head of the Holy Grail and bringing your men together. And you don't expect anything less from yourself either. Arianna even juggles her share of the work and helps out both of our series."
"Of course. I've been entrusted with the task. It's my responsibility. Arianna, on the other hand, is still getting the hang of things, but is efficient and always completes her given share," he boasts. I sweatdropped a bit. 'The stuff said about me was a bit unnecessary, don't you think?'
"I need to work harder, too," I hear Felicità say a bit depressed. "Not to mention my Arcana powers haven't stabilized yet."
"Don't worry, Fel. You'll get the hang of it soon," I assure her.
"You were asking why we even have Arcana powers, weren't you?" Nova asks her. This caught my attention. "Yeah."
"At times, I don't know myself," he says. I look at him after he says that. 'Nova... Don't tell me you-' but my thoughts were cut off when Felicità bumps into someone. "Ah, I'm so sorry." The guy just pulls his cap down a bit and walks off.
"Nova, Arianna. That guy," she says. Understanding, we run after him.
"Hey," Fel calls out. We walk towards him, Felicità taking the wallet from him. "This isn't yours."
"I cannot ignore those who threaten the peace of our island," Nova states, getting into a position to draw his sword if necessary. I get into position, as well. "Depending on the situation, I will use force if need be."
"Sounds fun. Just try, little boy." A few more thugs surround us. "What's with that flimsy sword?"
"Oh, it's one of those Giapponese katanas."
"Oh yeah, I hear that there's some women from Giappone in the Arcana Famiglia, this girl over here is one of them," one says, pointing at me. I glare at the man. "If they're letting a woman lead, the family's doomed." Felicità was about ready to blow her top when Nova quickly advanced, his katana to the thief's neck. "Is that all you have to say before you die?"
"Don't tell me...you're Samurai Nova?"
"I will not forgive those who insult Papa and Mama. And especially not Arianna."
"Same here," Felicità says, taking out her knives.
"I definitely won't stand for it either. Especially not when I was directly insulted. Twice," I say while taking out my katana. "We agree for once." Nova and I strike down our opponents with the blades' backsides whilst Felicità simply evaded any attacks and kicked them down. "Damn it!" one cursed, trying to run away. Before he could get away, Felicità threw her knives at him. Well, in front of him anyway. The three of us look to each other and smile.
All that's left is the wallet.
"Here is your wallet," Felicità says to the lady, giving her back the stolen wallet. "Thank you very much," she thanks us. The girls, meaning me and Felicità, returned the wallet whilst the guys stood in the alley to Isis Regalo. "I thought I'd never see it again. You're a live saver, thank you so much."
"It's our job, it's the least we can do," I tell her. I looked towards the guys to see that they were talking about something. I could make out that they were talking about Felicità since Nova looked our way.
Afterwards, we walked back home. It had gotten pretty late, we weren't able to get fertilizer for the plants either.
Or so I thought.
We walked side-by-side once more, except Felicità and I switched places, Nova still in the middle. In the midst of walking, he took out a pouch from his pocket. 'When did he get that?' "Eh?"
"Fertilizer for the flowers. We were busy dealing with the thieves, so I had one of my subordinates go buy it," he tells her. "Thank you, Nova." We continued walking, holding a conversation or two here and there.
"Hey, what was that earlier?" she asked us. "Earlier?" I ask. "You know, the thing you two did to make the thieves unconscious."
"Ah, you mean striking them with the back of the blade. It's a Giapponese move that Mama instructed. Using it, no blood will be shed and Regalo will remain clean. Aria had learned to use a sword at a young age, so she's very helpful in our patrols," he says. "That's amazing," she comments. "Of course it is."
Hm~ He's embarrassed.
"You and Mama get along really well. Arianna, too. You get along with both Mama and Papa." We turned to look at her. "Mama is really nice to all the members of the family, but I think she expects great things from you."
"You don't understand anything."
"Huh?" Felicità turns around. Nova and I stopped walking. I looked at him a bit anxious about what was happening. "Nova..." I mutter.
"You have no idea how much everyone expects from you. I believe the reason Papa brought up the Arcana Duello is to make you, the family's heir, stronger." He walks off. I trailed behind him as he said, "Work hard so you can meet those expectations." As we walked pass Felicità, I tell her "Sorry" and follow him back to the mansion.
'I have to keep my promise.'
The Next Day
"Listen well, Nova. You must make a good impression at the meeting today. You are Arianna and Felicità's cousin. Not only that, you are the young lady's betrothed. Eventually, our family will replace Mondo and take control of Regalo." Nova looked down, as his mom held his cheek, making him look up at her.
"It will be all right, Nova. I'm sure they will like you. You have the qualifications and the strength."
"Yes, Father. Mother."
I woke up, sitting up in bed, a hand to my head. "Why am I having these dreams now?" *knock*knock*knock* "Who is it?"
"Pardon, may we have a word?"
We move to my office, Aria joining us along the way. Must've asked for her opinion, as well. He places a stack of papers and explains the situation. "Supposedly, the money is being used for 'research fees', but the amount seems rather high."
"The possibility of improper use of funds, huh," she says whilst standing opposite from where I sat. "Thank you for the report. I will figure something out. You may leave," I tell him. "Now, how am I going to figure this out?"
*knock*knock*
I look towards the door, standing up to answer it. "Now who is it?" I opened the door to see a serious-looking Luca. "May I have a word." Complying with his request, I told Aria to look into the matter whilst I was gone, and left with Luca to the dining room.
"You are too hard on Milady. Even yesterday, Milady wanted to become closer to you, and you only pushed her away. I cannot forgive this."
"Did she say something?" I ask. "She didn't have to. How long do you think I've been her attendant?"
"I acknowledge that Fel is trying her best." "Then you should just tell her that," he says. I felt a slight blush come onto my cheeks.
"But it'd be unacceptable for her to be content with her current state. She still has more work to do," I tell him. "I understand your difficult position. For example, your engagement to Milady being voided. And your parents... But I don't think that justifies you being cold to Milady."
"That's not my intention..."
"As much as I am against this notion, I'd like you to become friendlier with Milady, just as you are with Arianna-sama," he says. More like orders. "What do you mean?" I ask.
"Milady, Arianna-sama, please come in."
I turn to the kitchen entrance to see Felicità and Aria walk in, Felcitià pushing a cart with a pot on it. 'I thought I told Aria to work...' I thought, narrowing my eyes at her a bit. She catches my glance and smiles. I could tell what she was thinking. 'Sorry but this is for both your sakes.'
"I had Luca and Arianna show me how to cook something," Felicità says. "Since you've helped me out so much. Here you go." It was a cream soup. I hold the spoon, dipping into the soup to eat. "It's good," I comment. "Really?"
"Yeah. What kind of soup is this?" I ask.
"It's chickpea soup, Nova," I hear Luca tell me from my left side. "What?!" I blurt out. I turn back to Felicità, not failing to notice Aria giggling behind her.
"Why in the world would you pick this soup?"
"Luca said it was delicious and very nutritious. Arianna said so, as well," she tells me. "Make sure you eat all of Milady's cooking."
After Luca left, I ate all of the soup. With a little help from Arianna, who put her servings into a cup. "Disregarding the ingredients, it was good. I thank you." "I'm glad."
"I have a favor to ask of you," I tell her.
Felicità and Arianna walked down the stairs, remembering what Nova asked of them.
"Even if you're discovered, you should still be able to gather information without bringing too much suspicion on yourself," Nova tells them while giving Felicità a key. They nod in reply. "I'd like you to check for anything suspicious and things that don't belong in the lab."
They make their way in front of a door.
"I don't want to doubt another family member either. So I would like you to dispel that doubt."
Felicità looks at her cousin, Arianna nodding at her. She inserts the key, but the key doesn't turn. "Why?"
"May I ask what you're doing?" Jolly asks the two ladies. They turn to see him holding up a ring of keys. "I change the lock every now and then, you see."
He walks up to them, unlocking the door to the lab and gesturing for them to enter.
"I'm assuming the security director sent you both. Probably to expose the improper use of funds by the research lab?" Arianna was calm, but Felicità was not. "You're so easy to read," he says, placing some books in front of the two. Arianna narrows her eyes at the man as he says, "If you still have your doubts, come back as often as you like. I won't run or hide." Getting up, Felicità takes the books into her hands. "We will be taking these documents," Arianna says before they leave the lab.
"They can look at as many documents as they likes..." Jolly looks behind the curtains. "but I can't have you found just yet."
At Nova's Office
We were looking at the documents that Jolly oh-so-willingly handed over. "To think he already knew of my plan. That would be my fault, I apologize."
"It's fine, Nova," Aria tells me, looking at a few of the documents herself. "Since he provided these documents, it's hard to say how trustworthy they are," I tell them. Felicità picks up some documents.
"Huh? This is..." She trails off while handing me the documents.
I glare at the papers she handed me. "Why does Jolly have this?" I felt Aria put a hand on my shoulder, squeezing it upon touch. Somehow, it made me calm down a bit. Strange.
"Is that..."
"They're my parents' clinical charts," I tell her. "I see, your parents... But why does Jolly have them?" I get up from my chair, making Aria step back to let me pass.
"I don't know. I'd like to know that myself."
Felicità and Aria follow me as I sit on the armchair, Felicità kneeing beside the chair whilst Aria merely stood beside her. "Maybe Jolly is researching a cure or their illness."
"Illness is just a cover," Aria tells her. "Eh?"
"The truth is different," I began, using a hand to cover my face. "They've been asleep for the past several years. They're asleep because I put them to sleep with my Arcana powers. With the power of Death," I tell her, removing my hand to look at her. "I'm sure that you who grew up with the love of Mama and Papa couldn't understand."
"Nova..." I hear Arianna say quietly. Getting up from the armchair, I continue.
"My parents used me. They wanted to use my Arcana powers to take over the family. They only thought of me as a tool for moving up. Not only that, they wanted to kill Mama and Papa. I wanted to protect them, and I couldn't forgive my parents. By the time I realized what was going on, I had lost control of my powers... But this is what I wished for. I don't have any doubts that I did the right thing." I turn to the two to see Aria kneeling beside Felicità, wiping her tears with a handkerchief.
"Why are you crying?" I ask taken aback.
"Because...you won't."
"You grew up being loved. I grew up as a tool to help them move up. I can't bury this gap. I thank you two for worrying about me. But leave me alone," I tell them, turning to leave my office. I heard Aria call out my name as I left.
'I'm sorry, Aria. But I need to be alone.'
"I am still weak," Nova tells Sumire. "I knew I'd have to tell her one day, but I ended up taking out my feelings on her- no, both of them."
"Hey, Nova. Do you remember what you gave Mondo and me the moment you voided your engagement to Felicità?" she asks. "You can come for it whenever you'd like. I believe that Felicità... No. Arianna and Felicità will be there for you." Nova shakes his head.
"They won't be able to understand how I feel. And I...don't want them to."
Sumire looks at him. 'Nova...One day, you are going to have to choose. My daughter...or my niece. And Arianna will not break her promise to me.
She cares for you too much to do so.'
What is your Tarocco?
Wow, I didn't even give him that many parts. He only spoke in this and the first chappie ; w;... Oh well, I'll think of something. Let's just say that's really busy with confidential matters and is usually with Mondo.
R&R? Tell me what you think? Contribute your ideas! I'll take 'em all ~ Well?
Enjoy your stay at Regalo Island.
ffxshilayt aka Shila -
